Officials in parts of New Jersey suggested residents evacuate from flood-prone areas along the coast, including areas still recovering from damage done by Hurricane Sandy in October, according to CNN affiliate WABC.

Delaware's Emergency Management Agency also urged some coastal residents in that state to evacuate, saying flooding would cut off exit routes by later Wednesday. The agency warned of almost certain flooding in areas, and said "conditions during the height of the storm could make the process of leaving flooded areas dangerous or impossible."

Water breached a sand dune in Sussex County, forcing the closure of State Route 1 in the county, according to DEMA.

Midwest recovering

The storm is the same one that earlier dumped about a foot of snow in parts of Illinois, Minnesota and North Dakota, and paved a white swath across the Upper Midwest.

Chicago's O'Hare International Airport had 6 inches of snow Tuesday, besting a 1999 record for the date by 2.2 inches. It was the first snowfall of 6 inches or more in the Windy City since February of 2011, the weather service said.

Plows removed snow from roads and trucks spread salt and sand, but drivers still slipped off of roadways, leaving snow-covered cars to be retrieved by tow trucks.

Tuesday's snow put a drag on air traffic in the Midwest, leading to delays and cancellations, but planes continued to fly in Columbus, Ohio, and Minneapolis, Minnesota, after plows slung the snow from runways.

O'Hare canceled 900 flights Tuesday, while Chicago's other major airport, Midway, canceled 240 flights, according to the city's aviation department.